8/2/11

So we all know that infamous (expensive) uber-tasty broccoli salad from Whole Foods right? Man that stuff is good! Almost worth it's weight in goodness.

I, of course, do love it, but have always wanted to jazz it up (no brainer there).

What I created is good. No no, I mean it's good. I did not foresee myself eating this for breakfast, lunch and then for dinner with some roasted chicken.

I should point out to you all that I am NOT a broccoli fan, nor am I a mayo-based salad fan UNLESS it's my balsamic potato salad. So, with that said you have to know that I must really like this crunchy broccoli salad. The flavors going on, the textures, the un-mayo'ey like taste....really tasty.

I know I say this alllllll the time, but promise me you will make this? Even if the ingredient list sounds funky? Trust me you will love it--it's highly addictive. But hey it's filled with veggies. OK?

Cook notes: One can easily add bacon chunks to this, and I've even seen almond butter and/or peanut butter added into this and I can now see why. Fabulous additions. If you do use almond butter add a pinch of cinnamon too--trust me.

Cook notes: One can easily add bacon chunks to this, and I've even seen almond butter and/or peanut butter added into the dressing, and I can now see why. Fabulous additions. If you do use almond butter add a pinch of cinnamon too--trust me. This does not keep for days as sesame sticks get soggy. This makes a good amount of dressing, so use sparingly and keep the rest for future batches. Obviously if you dress the salad and then store leftovers it will get soggy. So dress the salad as you go along and add sesame sticks after you've dressed the salad.

Make sure to flash cook the broccoli heads to take the raw edge off. A quick 2 minute cook should work.
Drain them well. Even go as far as to blot with paper towels. Place in bowl and chill.

Combine all the dressing ingredients in a small bowl and mix, do a taste test and see if you like it and/or what it needs. Then set aside in fridge to chill.
When ready to serve get all the add in’s ready on a plate; then in a giant bowl add in the chilled broccoli heads, carrots, and all the add in’s. Mix well. Then in batches pour in the dressing and stir. Add as much or a little dressing as you desire. I found that this doesn’t need a lot of dressing.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 2-hours. If you do add bacon to this, add it at the very last minute just before serving. You don’t want the bacon chunks getting soggy.

Good lord... I think I just had a foodgasm.... My grocery store sells a broccoli salad with cranberries, sunflower seeds and currants in it that I absolutely adore, this looks 1000x better! I can't wait to make this!

This looks yummy....you have a lovely blog… You have so many wonderful recipes..I have bookmarked you blog and some recipe from that to try..Please check out my blog.I am having a Giveaway in my blog..Please check it out and partcipate in that..http://yummytummy-aarthi.blogspot.com/2011/07/homemade-bounty-chocolate-and-giveaway.html

AarthiHai Dear

This looks yummy....you have a lovely blog… You have so many wonderful recipes..I have bookmarked you blog and some recipe from that to try..Please check out my blog.I am having a Giveaway in my blog..Please check it out and partcipate in that..http://yummytummy-aarthi.blogspot.com/2011/07/homemade-bounty-chocolate-and-giveaway.html

I remember being at a party where someone brought that broccoli salad from Whole Foods. It was the first thing scarfed up! Which is surprising given how many people are not fans of broccoli. But just goes to show that when something tastes THAT good, even non-fans appreciate it.

Okay, I finally made this and I want you to know how much I love this. The dressing is so good. Spicy! I may have been extra heavy handed with the goodness.

I like to try to reduce the calories and love veggies so I doubled the carrots and used reduced fat mayo. Reduced fat mayo has a funny taste usually, but all the good spices you added masked that strangeness.

I just have to figure out what to do with my extra dressing. Any suggestions?

I have now made this a many times and have some feedback, notes, suggestions from me and my trusty "taste-testers."

* The recipe as-is makes way too much dressing! I like to make the whole batch anyway and keep the rest (tightly covered!) in the fridge for use as a salad dressing or veggie dip during the rest of the week. * Dressing can be a bit spicy for some in a crowd so add the spice a little at a time as you make the dressing until it's right for you. I personally like it the way the recipe calls for, but I'm a fan of a little heat. As the dressing sits in your fridge the heat can increase so just add an extra dollop of mayo/yogurt to cool it down if you need. * Plain Greek yogurt is a great lite substitution for the mayo. It's just as delicious. In fact, I think I prefer it personally. * The full quantity of sugar and honey is not needed, in my opinion. Go for the lesser quantities. There is plenty of sweetness in the dressing and from the raisins. * If your raisins are a bit tough, rehydrate them in water for a few minutes while you chop the rest of the veggies. Toss them in and they will be wonderfully tender and plump. * Crumbled bacon is a wonderful addition! Unless you are going for a vegetarian version, I highly recommend this. * The salad will wilt as it sits so if serving at a party/BBQ don't overdo the dressing and/or have a stash of undressed veggies to add later to spruce it back up. * Consider serving sesame sticks on the side for people to put on as they serve themselves because they will get soggy in short order. * If you can't find sesame sticks at your grocery store you can use the crunchy lo mein noodles. Go for the sesame if you can find them, though. The flavor is excellent.

We love this recipe as a base for so many others too. To make it a main course I've added shrimp, leftover cubed pork, noodles (regular and the tofu variety you can find in the produce section for a lite and protein-packed meal), chicken, etc. Add them in combination or not. My two favorite versions for main courses: * Make veggie mix and dressing separately. Top veggie mix on washed and roughly chopped lettuce. Add protein of choice, optional. Drizzle with dressing, toss to mix and serve. * In heated wok cook protein of your choice (I usually cube and season meats). When about two minutes from being cooked through add noodles (we really do love the tofu ones for a lite version), toss. Add veggies and flash cook. Remove from heat, toss with dressing. Serve topped with sesame sticks, chopped parsley, or even a squeeze of lemon.

Hope everyone enjoys this recipe as much as we do! Thanks Vanilla Sugar! :)

about vanilla sugar blog

Unique eats, creative recipes, as simple as possible.What drives me to create? Seeing dishes in restaurants, meals created on TV, recipes in cookbooks/online, and I always think to myself why didn’t they add this or why did they leave out that? Love to question, love to research, and love to learn about combining different flavors and textures in recipes.Recipe creations please email: vanillasugarblog@aol.com